A sense of deja vu
by JCB
Summary: The colonial fleet has reached Earth at last.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note**: I've been MIA for over a year but still lurking furtively around. I know that I haven't finished my other stories yet but my little brain got working in overdrive from my ever increasing hypotheses on the final Cylon and from some recent comments made by cast members that I've read. It just would not go away until written and this is the result. This first chapter is mainly set up – more revelations coming later – so please be kind.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own any of this – I'm just borrowing

**A sense of d****éjà vu**

**Chapter 1**

Lee Adama gazed out of the window of Colonial One at the shiny green-blue planet below. They had reached this lump of rock that they believed was the mythical Earth eight days ago and after days of intense negotiations over the radio he would soon be part of the first delegation to actually meet their Earth brethren face to face. The people of Earth had been rather circumspect in their greeting of their long lost cousins. Lee could hardly blame them: the Colonials' story was as fantastical one and, despite the welcoming appearance from here in orbit, all was not what they had hoped to find on the planet below. From the information they had gleaned from their initial discussions and from their scientific analysis of the atmosphere, it was clear that earth had suffered a similar fate to the colonies, albeit several millennia earlier. The results of the nuclear holocaust that had occurred in their 21st century were still apparent in the vast desolate, uninhabitable areas of the planet, the unpredictable climate and the decimated human population. Still, the planet did still offer a mostly breathable atmosphere, food and water and, more importantly for both sides, a boost to their dwindling populations. The earth population was substantially larger than theirs: several million in fact, but they had indicated that they would welcome the introduction of some genetic diversity after all of the issues they had experienced as a result of the massive radiation exposure of the population back in the holocaust. It was looking hopeful that an agreement for the people of the colonial fleet to settle on Earth could be reached.

Lee could not help but think that the sooner they reached such an agreement the better. Everyone in the fleet was tired: tired of running, tired of living in metal tin cans in space, tired of the endless search for sufficient supplies to sustain their flight and tired of the battle against the Cylons. The Lords only knew what they were going to tell the Earthers about that. Lee himself was just about running on empty, emotionally and physically drained by all that had happened over the past year. He should feel some excitement about the coming meeting, and indeed there were some butterflies in his stomach, but he was just so frakking weary that the sooner all this political pontificating was over the better. He was going to find himself an isolated spot, preferably on a beach lapped by a warm ocean, and just sleep in the sun for days and days and days. But he could not do that yet. He had to play his part and support the president through the discussions. Since the revelation that Tory Foster was a Cylon, he had become her assistant and general right-hand man and she, along with along with over 30,000 other people, was relying on him.

"At least I know you're not a Cylon: I have it on very good authority from an excellent eye-witness that you were conceived and born in the normal way," Laura Roslin had quipped with a wry smile when offering him the job. He did not think that it was a particularly ringing indictment of his skills that the only reason he seemed to have been given the job was because his father could confirm that he was human, but then beggars could not be choosers when it came to re-establishing his relationship with Roslin after Baltar's trial. It had been like walking on eggshells at first but over the months, as her health continued to deteriorate and he proved his worth, she had come to rely on him heavily. He was Mr Adama in public but Captain Apollo again in private.

At least one of his personal relationships had been repaired. His ex-wife refused to speak to him and only communicated through lawyers and his relationship with his father could be described as strained at best. Although again he had made more of an effort to repair the damage since the discovery that Saul Tigh was a Cylon, as he knew that his father struggled to understand how his friend of such long standing could actually be one of their enemy. It had aged his father visibly and Lee suspected that he too was bone-weary of their flight. He also suspected that his father was more affected than most by Laura Roslin's illness. He could not help but soften his attitude towards his father after he observed him watching Laura with such desperation and longing in his eyes. A look that Lee well understood from his own emotional attachment to a woman he could not have. This naturally brought his thoughts to Kara. She had completely lost her shit over Sam being a Cylon, but then again that was really nothing new. He was trying to be there for her as a friend but it was so difficult. Their relationship was still so fragile. It had taken her a while to accept his reasoning behind helping with Baltar's trial and giving up his wings, but they had both come to accept their mistakes. He loved her and he knew that, in her own way, she loved him, but neither of them had been in the right place emotionally to explore whether that love could ever be taken further than a profound friendship. Of course they would not have reached Earth at all if it had not been for Kara. He knew that his support in the face of general scepticism and some outright hostility about her claim to know the way to earth had been very important to her.

He sighed and reached for his tie. All this personal introspection was not getting him anywhere: he knew he needed to keep his head in the game today if they were to conclude the negotiations with the Earthers successfully. He shrugged into his jacket and walked purposefully towards the president's quarters. He hardly had time to knock before she was stepping through the hatch.

"How do I look? This has been my best suit for so long that it's starting to fall apart at the seams!" She straightened her jacket and pinched her cheeks to try and restore some colour to them. He noticed that the jacket belt was on the tightest notch yet it was still loose. She looked so fragile that Lee's breath caught in his throat: he wondered what was keeping her going and suspected that it was only her iron will and determination to get the colonial people to safety.

"You look very presidential ma'am," he replied.

"Liar, I look like a tired, sick old woman, but it's nice to be buttered up by a handsome young man so you have my permission to do it as often as you think necessary!" She laughed and caught her arm through his as they walked towards the hanger bay. Lee would not have told anyone how heavily she needed to lean on him for the worlds.

They were met on the shuttle by the rest of the delegation which consisted of vice-president Zarek, the quorum representative from Aerilon and Major Gaeta, who was representing his father. It had been agreed that his father should not participate in this first meeting: if something went wrong then the admiral would be able to lead the fleet away to safety. The journey down to the planet was accomplished in a rather nervous and uncomfortable silence. They had spent many hours agreeing their strategy for the negotiations on the previous night so no one felt the need to re-hash the details. Thankfully it was just a short trip and then they were being ushered onto a landing platform. They were greeted by what was obviously a junior flunky and shown into a large room. They were a little surprised by the lack of ceremony but that quickly dissipated as they were served coffee: real coffee.

"OK, I don't care what we agree to, Lee, as long as we get lots more of this," Laura whispered to Lee on a blissful sigh after her first sip. The flunky gave an amused laugh at their obvious enjoyment.

"I see that we have certain tastes in common. Please have some more, there is plenty. The Yangshi and her official delegation will join you shortly."

During the initial discussions they had learned that the earth peoples were lead by a figure known as the Yangshi. She seemed to be a kind of combined political and spiritual leader and Laura was anxious to meet her as this role seemed to be akin to what hers had become during their journey from the colonies. They turned as the doors at the far end of the room opened and an entourage came through, at its centre a woman in a simple tunic. A twinge of memory prickled down Laura's neck as she watched the woman come closer. She wished that she had not been so vain and had kept her glasses on so that she could get a closer look at this woman before she had to shake hands with her. Beside her, Laura felt Lee tense. She turned to him to see a look of abject horror spreading across his face.

"Ahh, Gods no. It can't be……it can't be," he whispered through clenched teeth before falling to his knees, his anguished gaze riveted to the approaching woman.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: **Sorry for the long delay between chapters but this one has been really difficult to write. I'm still not sure that I haven't dropped a ball somewhere, but I'm sure you'll pick me up on it if I have, so here goes.

**Chapter 2**

The woman came up to them and smiled at Laura before looking down at Lee, a well-shaped eyebrow raised in enquiry as he gazed at her, half in horror, half in anguish. She stepped closer to him and rested a hand against his cheek.

"Mom?..." he managed to get out as a kind of plea. Laura looked quickly between the two of them as the sliver of memory coalesced into a clear picture in her head of the family photos scattered around the admiral's quarters. This woman was older than Carolanne Adama had been when those photos were taken but even she could see the similarities between the Yangshi and the admiral's ex-wife whom she had never even met. The Yangshi gave Lee a smile of understanding and spoke for the first time. Her voice was soft and clear, with an accent rather like Gaius Baltar's.

"No, I'm not your mother, but I imagine that the resemblance is remarkable. I presume that your name is Adama?" Lee nodded, his eyes never leaving her face.

"Yes, my name is Lee Adama…but….how did you know…?" She continued smiling at him as if her presence had not just turned his whole world upside down.

"All in good time, Lee." She helped him to his feet but kept her hand on his as she turned to the rest of the colonial delegation. The contact gave him a strange feeling of comfort that he could not begin to comprehend in light of the incredible revelation that had just been made. He could not think clearly; he kept blinking as if to clear his head but his mind just kept screaming "I'm a Cylon, I'm a Cylon". He focused on the feel of her hand to try and steady himself as she spoke to the others.

"I would like to welcome you all to Earth. I'm sure that you've had a most tiresome journey and I'm sorry that we've not been more welcoming. You must forgive my councillors: they are not unnaturally cautious given our circumstances, but I have no doubts now that you are who you say you are." She turned to the people behind her. "I have seen all that I need to see. Please give our cousins every assistance in their settlement."

Laura almost laughed as the Yangshi's entourage tried to hide their astonishment at this pronouncement, as if she had just asked them to serve their visitors tea instead of housing nearly forty thousand people, but she was feeling too shocked at their almost surreal situation for such mirth. She looked around at the others and realised from their dazed expressions that she could expect little help from anyone else. Tom at least raised an eyebrow at her. She presumed that he was thinking what she was: were these people Cylons? Had they, by allowing themselves to be seduced by Kara Thrace's supposed vision of Earth, lead the fleet straight to the Cylon home world? They needed to get some answers quickly before any commitments to settle on this planet were made inadvertently or any chance of escape was lost. A thought crossed her mind that she really needed to get a message to the admiral to put the fleet on alert, but that was quickly followed by the realisation that if Carolanne Adama was a Cylon it had to call in to question the admiral himself. She thought back to what that first Leoben they had interrogated had said to her.

"Adama is a Cylon."

Perhaps he had been right after all: he had just not told her which Adama. She decided that she had to take the bull by the horns if they were not to be swept up in the fleet's desire to settle on this planet. The situation needed to be played with subtlety and diplomacy, which had never been Tom's strong points, so she needed to take charge before he did. One further glance at Lee told her that he was not going to be of any use to her and, indeed, she felt the need to distance herself from him also, given the question mark over the Adamas. Their reliance on the admiral and members of his "family" had suddenly become quite frightening.

"Madame Yangshi, thank you for your generosity but I think we need a little more discussion before we begin any settlement." Laura tried to use what Lee referred to as her "presidential" voice to establish her authority. The Yangshi looked at her thoughtfully. Laura felt as if she were reading her mind.

"Of course you do. And please call me Eve. Madame Yangshi is so official. Let's take this somewhere more comfortable and I will explain as best I can."

She lead them to a pleasant, sunny garden room with open doors onto a courtyard and view of a lake beyond; it was such a beautiful vista that Laura, who had not seen such a sight in a long time, could not help a sigh of pleasure from escaping. Eve gestured for them all to sit, taking a place next to Lee. She addressed herself directly to him first.

"Firstly I should assure you that neither I nor your mother are Cylons in your understanding of that term, but before I can reveal our exact relationship I need to explain the joint history of our peoples." Lee could almost hear the collective sigh of relief from his colleagues. Her words immediately lifted a weight from his mind, although the careful choice of phrasing still made him uneasy. She turned to address the whole group. "I'm afraid that what I have to tell you is going to change some of the fundamental principles of your beliefs as I understand them. From the information you have supplied to my councillors I understand that you refer to Earth as the thirteenth colony, is that correct?" Laura nodded.

"In fact we should be called the first colony. The colonial peoples are descended from a group of refugees from Earth, not the other way around."

"But the scriptures…."

"Chronicle the journey from Earth to your home worlds. When that journey was made our inter-planetary travel technology was very primitive. The journey took many hundreds of years. Over such a time details get forgotten, history gets misinterpreted, fiction becomes fact. I'm sure that your scriptures are like many of the religious texts that we have had here on Earth: written in metaphorical terms and open to multiple interpretations. I suggest that you look at them again and tell me if they couldn't just as easily document a journey from Earth to the colonies as the other way around."

Laura opened her mouth to immediately contest this statement but then shut it again: despite all her studies of the sacred texts since they had left the colonies she could not think of a single quote to dispute Eve's claim so she remained silent.

"How do you know this? And what does it have to do with my……my mother?"asked Lee.

"During a time known here as the 21st century, the human capacity for scientific experiment was insatiable, matched only by the inability of the different peoples of Earth to accept their differences and live in harmony with each other. It was a time when many human diseases remained untreatable, but when people wanted to live longer, healthier, easier lives and they looked to science to solve all these problems. It lead to research into the fundamentals of life, cellular regeneration and the manipulation of DNA. Despite the attempts of various of the religions at the time to ban or control the research, a full human clone was eventually produced: me. I was the first fully human clone, created from a sample of DNA from the chief scientist's dead daughter."

"But that was thousands of years ago. How come you're still alive? Can you live forever?"

"No, I have a longer lifespan than most humans, about 250 years, but I can be re-cloned. I age like any human but each lifecycle, as I approach death, my tissue is regenerated into the next generation to preserve the cloning DNA and the knowledge that I alone retain. It is a technique that has been passed down through the generations of clones. Each successive clone is still named Eve, which was the name given to the first clone by our creator. It is this continual cycle of existence that has lead to the reverence with which I am regarded by the people of Earth today. I have a unique knowledge of the history of the human race over the last millennia and, unlike the scriptures, my knowledge comes from my own experience, not hearsay and handed-down information. I try to use that knowledge to guide our people to a better future by applying the lessons of the past because I know that all of this has happened before…."

"And it will happen again," supplied Laura, a frisson of fear at Eve's use of the Cylon mantra tingling down her spine. Could this woman be the Cylon's one true God that they continually referred to?

"Yes, unless we learn from our mistakes and change the pattern: that is my ultimate value to the people of Earth. Human history is littered with examples where people have learnt from their mistakes, but with the passing of time those lessons are forgotten or ignored and they make the same mistakes again. I act as a collective memory and conscience so that those mistakes can be avoided in the future, which brings us to perhaps the worse mistake in human history and the connection between Earth and the colonies." She paused for a moment as if to collect her thoughts.

"I was the first but not the only clone. The scientists continued to develop the cloning technique. My re-cloning is a lengthy and difficult process but eventually they were able to develop clones which, while they still aged like normal humans, were able to automatically regenerate. In total twelve of these second generation clones were created, including, for want of a better word, the next version of me. At the same time that this research was taking place, the seemingly interminable religious and political wars between the various peoples of Earth were spiralling out of control to the point where the nuclear holocaust that you have been told about brought life as we knew it on Earth to a catastrophic end. Almost eighty percent of the population were killed immediately in a war of retaliation and counter retaliation. Many more died in the years afterwards from radiation poisoning and the consequences of radiation exposure. It was clear to those that survived that man had all but destroyed this once bountiful planet. Although our experience of space travel was limited at that time, it was decided that an expedition to investigate possible alternative planets beyond our own solar system that could support human life would be mounted. All of the second generation clones were to be part of the expedition, because of their re-generation capabilities, along with a selected number of ordinary young humans who were free from radiation side effects and still able to reproduce. They left this planet precisely three thousand, eight hundred and fifty two years ago. At first we received some messages back from them but these dwindled out after a number of years. The hope of salvation faded and as the generations passed it was forgotten that we had ever sent out explorers into space as we fought to re-build and maintain our lives here on Earth. Except by me: I alone retained the knowledge and the records of the expedition, but there was nothing I could do but wait. The one restraint that the people make on me is that I am forbidden to leave the surface on the planet so I was unable to investigate the fate of the travellers myself. Then I was given a sign that it was time to seek out the path of those explorers. Fortunately in the intervening time our technology had significantly improved and the envoy that I sent was able to pick up the markers left by our original expedition and reach your planets within a few years."

"An envoy? Why didn't he make himself known to the colonial government?" Laura asked.

"I think he felt that he was unlikely to be believed. How do you think the colonial government would have responded to an unknown person declaring that they were from Earth?" She asked with a wry smile. Every one of the colonials knew the answer to that question: He would have been clapped up in the nearest mental institution and left to rot.

"He reached the colonies after the war with the Cylons was over, but he saw indicators that what had happened to our world would soon happen to yours."

"He didn't make any attempt to stop it from happening?" asked the representative from Aerilon in a voice of desperation.

"Again, I ask you what could one ordinary person have done, especially in that post-war environment? He did the best thing that he could. He was able to find evidence that five of the original clones still existed and then he returned here with this information so that we could prepare for your arrival. So you see we have been expecting you for some time." As she finished she looked around at her audience. Their expressions were a mixture of disbelief and confusion, just as she had expected.

"You said that there were twelve clones originally but you only found five. Does that mean there are another seven still out there?" Gaeta asked, obviously thinking of the seven other known humanoid Cylons and voicing the unspoken question of the group.

"There was no evidence that the other seven had survived the journey. We do not know of all the hardships they faced on that journey, but we do know that the regeneration process is severely affected by radiation, severe heat exposure and other extreme conditions. We can only surmise that the other clones were lost during the journey."

"So their regeneration process isn't just downloading like software?"

"Not at all. Some techniques learned in robotics were used in their creation but they were kept fully human. I can assure you that they are not like the humanoid Cylons that you have described at all. Think of the regeneration like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Are you familiar with the legend of the phoenix?"

"Yes. We even use the phoenix as the symbol of our military. It's supposed to have been a symbol from an illustration in the original scrolls of the Gods," Lee supplied, pointing to the "Galactica" badge on Gaeta's uniform.

"I'm sorry to sound sceptical, Eve, but how have these clones remained undetected until a few months ago? I mean people re-generating themselves surely wouldn't go unnoticed." Laura winced as Tom's words dripped with sarcasm. The Yangshi seemed impervious. She looked him square in the eye as she replied.

"You think so? There are only five of them after all. That's an extremely small number in a population of several billion. How many news stories did you hear about mysterious disappearances or missing persons that fade out of the limelight and are never resolved but just become reports gathering dust in a police office? What about the reports of abandoned babies? No one is ever able to trace their parents and so they are taken in and raised by local religious orders, like Galen Tyrol, or adopted like Carolanne Adama and Samuel Anders or raised in orphanages and children's homes like Tory Foster and Saul Tigh." She gazed steadily at Zarek and he was the first one to flush and back down.

"As you can see my information is quite comprehensive." She said with authority, but then relented somewhat. "After the first couple of generations and once they had settled on the colonies I suspect that the knowledge of what they were and where they had come from was lost. My generation process is deliberately detailed to maximise knowledge transfer. The automatic regeneration is by necessity much simpler. The new clone has no knowledge of their previous life unless they are told."

"But you said the clones are fully human too?" He glanced at Lee. "I mean they are able to reproduce normally, right?"

"Oh yes. I believe that were we to analyse the DNA of each member of your fleet we would probably identify some connection to the clones in each sample. With the exception of perhaps a longer lifespan the offspring of clones have no other characteristics of their parent; it just becomes DNA again."

"Even with two clone parents?" She frowned a little at this question.

"We never saw any examples of that. For some reason two clones seemed unable to reproduce together."

"The four..um….clones we have in our fleet all became aware of their status at the same time, although of course they thought they were Cylons. Can you explain that?"

"Although the knowledge of what they are would have been lost from their consciousness, a latent signal would remain in their DNA. I retained enough knowledge of their DNA to have my envoy leave a signal which would activate once they neared Earth."

"It happened at the Ionian nebula. They said it was music," supplied Gaeta. She nodded and smiled almost sheepishly.

"Yes, I did always so love Bob Dylan."

Laura sat back and rubbed her temples. She had a headache building. All of the information that Eve had given them was spinning around and around in her head. She was not sure that she was in a fit state to analyse it rationally. It seemed so plausible yet fantastic at the same time, but there were just too many similarities to the Cylons for comfort. Right now she did not know what to think or whom to trust. She really, really wanted to believe in Eve, but they had been fooled too many times before to let her trust this woman just yet, however spiritual and trustworthy she may appear. If only she were not so damned tired. Again, Eve seemed to know what she was thinking.

"I think that's probably more than enough for you all to take in today. Please accept our hospitality for tonight and we can talk again in the morning. I'm sure that you will have more questions by then and I will arrange for you to have access to my personal archive so that you can review the actual evidence that supports what I'm sure seems a rather unlikely chain of events." This promise definitely raised the hopes of the colonials. To see actual facts and data would certainly be a step towards acceptance and should either establish or banish any link to the Cylons.

"Thank you, you are most kind." Laura stood as the flunky miraculously appeared again and ushered them from the room. Laura swayed, unsteady on her feet, but Eve's hand steadied her.

"Forgive me for the presumption, but if you have the strength I would like you to see one of our doctors immediately. One of the only advantages of suffering the after effects of a nuclear holocaust for many thousand of years is that cancer is now a common but treatable disease on Earth."

"How did you know?" Eve looked at Laura with sad eyes.

"I have seen it too many times to mistake the signs." Laura nodded, too tired and indeed too sick to refuse the offer that had sparked an immediate feeling of hope within her chest.

Lee lingered after the others had left. He still had personal questions that he needed answers to right now. The Yangshi smiled at him encouragingly.

"So my…my mother was one of the five?" he asked.

"Yes she was." Lee swallowed convulsively before asking his next question.

"Could she be alive somewhere on the colonies or with the Cylons?" Eve thought for a moment but shook her head.

"I did wonder the same thing but I think it unlikely, Lee. From what you have told me about the Cylons I believe that if she were they would have identified the link to you and used it to their advantage by now. As I have already told you the clone's regeneration process is very sensitive to radiation. If she was exposed during the attacks then it is likely that she died and did not re-generate. I'm sorry."

"No, it's better this way. I'm not sure I could bare it if we had left her behind and I know that thought would destroy my father. We weren't really that close, better in recent years, but things were….difficult between her and my father when I was younger," he shrugged, hoping that she would fill in the blanks herself.

"Hmm, let me guess. Mood swings, unpredictable behaviour and rages?" Lee nodded in surprise at her perspicuity.

"I'm afraid they are side effects that were never eradicated from those clones. They must have carried through the generations."

"It's a really weird feeling talking to you. I mean you look like her, but otherwise, from what I can tell, you're really not alike at all. I can't really get my head around it. I mean what are we? What is our relationship?"

"Technically, if a scientist were to analyse our DNA he would declare that we were mother and son, but we both know that's not the reality. No one can replace your mother Lee, no matter what DNA they may have."

"No, but I would like to get to know you more if that's OK." He had no idea why he had just asked that; it just felt right.

"I'd like that too." She reached out and stroked his cheek. Lee again felt a sense of overwhelming comfort and peace at her touch. "I was never able to have a son of my own. It is one of my deepest regrets." They smiled at each other in understanding but then Lee stepped away slightly, his cheeks flushed. He knew that he should not get too close to this woman before they were certain of her veracity, but she had awakened a longing in him that he thought he had buried long ago, after his parents divorced and his mother had turned to drink. He felt deep within him that Eve was genuine, but he knew that his people would need more than his feelings as confirmation and he was honest enough with himself to question whether this feeling was being driven by his desire for it to be true rather than any real reason. He thought it would be better if he were able to get away from her for a while and have a chance to think it all through in his own environment. He also had to tackle the issue of informing his father and he felt that was something better dealt with sooner rather than later.

"I really need to talk with my father tonight. I don't want him hearing this from anyone else. So if it's acceptable to you, Madame Yangshi, I would like to return to Galactica this evening."

"Yes, you should go, but come back tomorrow. You can also do a favour for me. I would be very grateful if you could bring with you the woman you call Kara Thrace: I would like to speak with her."

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: **Many thanks for the lovely reviews and apologies for the delay in getting the next chapter up. I'm determined to get this finished before April for obvious reasons. This chapter is a little short but important filler – more fireworks next time.

**Chapter 3**

Lee dragged his feet along the corridor towards the admiral's quarters. He felt like he was ten years old again and trying to delay the inevitable confrontation with his father over some misdemeanour. But he was not ten any more and he could not put off this discussion even if he did not have the foggiest idea what he was going to say to his father about what had transpired during the meetings on Earth. On reaching his destination Lee mentally shrugged off his lassitude, squared his shoulders and knocked on the hatch. He entered in response to the muffled shout from within. The admiral was reviewing reports and he gestured Lee towards the chair by his desk before returning to his reading. Lee sat in silence as his father continued to work and tried to control his rising temper at this dismissive treatment. This was always how their meetings seemed to go now. Just in case he started to get any pretensions that he was somehow important to his father, the admiral would make sure that he understood where his son came in his life: somewhere below the latest reports on the state of the CO2 scrubbers! Eventually Adama finished his reading and looked up at Lee. They regarded each other in silence for what seemed like hours. Lee could not seem to get his mind to work and it felt like his tongue was glued to roof of his mouth. Fortunately his father broke the deadlock.

"Something profound must have happened to you down on that planet, Lee and it's obviously something that you're having difficulty talking about. I find that it's just best to get it out in the open."

"Their leader…the Yangshi…..she looks just like Mom," Lee blurted out. The blood drained from his father's face and a look of acute pain crossed his features.

"Carolanne is the final Cylon?" he managed to rasp out.

"No, no, she's not a Cylon; she's a clone," Lee sought to reassure him immediately. "Apparently Mom, Tigh, Tyrol and the others aren't the final Cylon models; they are descendants of some human clones who left Earth thousands of years ago It seems that we came from Earth, not the other way around." Lee proceeded to tell his father all that they had learned on Earth that day, including the fact that it was unlikely that his mother was still alive. His father heard him out in stony silence.

"And you believe this story?" Adama asked sceptically when Lee had at last finished speaking.

"Yes! Yes I do. Eve, she's….she's just completely believable. You know I'm not one for these things but she is very, very spiritual. You look at her and you trust her completely. I've never had that feeling with any of the Cylons we've encountered; you always feel that they are hiding something or have some other agenda and they're just plain evil. We've seen no indications of any Cylon presence at all or even that they have any knowledge of the Cylons beyond what we have already told them. It all makes sense, Dad; she even knew the signal that triggered the clones at the Ionian nebula, and the fact that these last five seem so different from the others. She described the mood swings and rages seen in these clones; how many times have we seen that type of unpredictable behaviour in Tyrol and Tigh and….and Mom."

"Hm, we'll see. I don't like it: it's too good to be true, but I'll reserve judgement for now. I will, however, have some covert preparations made so that the fleet can make an emergency jump if necessary."

"That's probably a good idea, but I'm convinced that it won't be necessary. I understand your scepticism Dad, I really do, but these people are real, they're not machines. They've suffered as we have but their struggle to survive has been much longer than ours. They've even managed to cure cancer. Why would they do that if they're just based on software?"

"They can cure cancer?" Lee's expression softened at the barely hidden note of hope in his father's voice. 

"Yes, the president is getting her first treatment as we speak. Their doctors are quite hopeful even though her cancer is so advanced." His father's brow furrowed.

"And you let them treat her without any knowledge of what they are giving her? Cottle should have checked it out first."

"Laura and I talked about that but she wanted to go straight ahead. We agreed that nothing could really do much harm at this stage," he said gently. His father looked away for a moment and pinched the furrow between his brows. Lee tactfully looked at the floor to let his father compose himself.

"I can't believe you left her there alone," he grumbled.

"The others are with her. I thought I needed to tell you about Eve face to face. It's bound to get out in the fleet sooner or later and I didn't want you broadsided by some accusation that your wife was a Cylon."

"Why would it get out? The only people who know what your mother looked like are you, me, Kara and Saul."

"Yeah, well I wasn't very circumspect when I first met Eve. All the delegates know." His father gave him a look. "Well what would you do if Mom suddenly walked in the room?" he replied defensively. "Anyway, I had to come back to get Kara. Eve asked to see her."

"She wants to see Kara? Why?"

"How the frak should I know Dad. We've never mentioned Kara at all but she asked for her by name. I'm presuming it has something to do with Kara's knowledge of the way to this planet. I thought we might finally get some answers about that."

"You didn't ask the reason yet you agreed to take her? How could you put her in danger like that?"

"There's no indication that she'll be in any danger. Besides, I'll be with her. I won't let anything happen to her."

"You better make sure it doesn't!"

"Yeah, I'll protect Kara with my life, Dad because that's what you'd want isn't it? If we were in a fight for our lives you'd rather I'd die to save Kara, your precious girl, than the other way around."

"You know that's not true," his father countered gruffly.

"Isn't it, Dad? From where I'm standing it seems pretty clear cut."

He got up and strode out, ignoring his father calling his name behind him. His encounters with his father always seemed to end like this, with them both frustrated and angry with one another. They should really be talking through all the implications of his mother being a clone, comforting each other as only family can do, but they were both too proud and too stubborn to help one another. Instead of turning round and trying to make amends with his father he went looking for Kara. She was the last person he wanted to see after the topic of this most recent confrontation with the admiral, but he was able to reason that it was not her fault that his father seemed to love her more than him; maybe he just wasn't loveable. He mentally dismissed that thought before he drowned in a well of self-pity and started towards Kara's usual haunts. He found her in the ready room going over training materials for her latest batch of nuggets. He flopped down in the seat next to her.

"What are you doing back?" she asked.

"Needed to see the old man," he made a show of pulling his tie loose and avoided her eyes. "And pick you up: your presence is requested on the planet." That got her attention.

"Me? Why?"

"You have a special destiny, remember. Eve, the woman leading the people on Earth asked for you personally. Any idea why or how she knows about you, Kara?"

"Not a frakking clue. You're sure they're nothing to do with the Cylons? At least if it's a woman I know it's not Leoben." She thought for a moment after he shook his head. "Maybe the Cylon God is a woman: now wouldn't that just be frakking poetic. Although I suppose she could be worse than Leoben, maybe she's Leoben's mother." Lee paled at this comment.

"What is it? Oh Gods, please tell me she's not a Cylon."

"Its OK she's not a Cylon as far as we can work out. She's not Leoben's mother……but, er, mine. Well not my mother exactly," he went on quickly as she stared at him with wide, startled eyes. "The humans have some sort of human cloning process and it seems my mother was one of these clones. This woman looks exactly like her but she's not her. I just thought you should know to, you know, prepare yourself when you meet her tomorrow," Lee was rambling in the face of Kara's horrified expression.

"But she's not a Cylon? And you're not a Cylon?"

"How many times do I need to tell you, Kara? No, she's not a Cylon, I'm not a Cylon, Zak wasn't a Cylon. We're all perfectly human. We just happen to have been made from some old, many times re-cycled DNA," he replied hotly. She could tell her reaction had upset him and laid a hand on his arm.

"And you believe all this?" She asked, her calm tone dispelling his anger and the fear that she would withdraw from him.

"Well I'm not a scientist, but we didn't see anything to make it unbelievable. Gaeta is going to examine all the genetic evidence tomorrow. There's more, Kara. Sam is one of these clones; he's not a Cylon."

"Really? Gods, I just knew it, I knew he couldn't be one of them." She clutched at his hand. "Maybe my taste in men isn't so bad after all." The teasing words and self-deprecating smile belied the fact that her hand was trembling in his. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and rubbed his thumb in soothing circles on her palm.

"You'll come and meet Eve won't you? I mean you wanted answers about the whole 'special destiny' thing. Well maybe this is your chance to get them."

"Yeah, I'll come, but if it turns out that I'm a Cylon then you have my permission to shoot me!"

"I think we'd do each other in if that turned out to be the case." 

He laughed and pulled her into a hug. As they both pulled back, their eyes caught and held. As if unable to stop himself, Lee leaned forward slightly and kissed Kara softly and gently on the lips. Instead of pulling away from the kiss as he had half expected her to do she responded by opening her mouth to him and deepening their kiss. Lee pulled her closer and responded in kind. It was not very long before hands were wandering and clothing was starting to be pulled off. As they broke apart, both panting from lust and lack of oxygen, Kara rested her forehead against his for a moment.

"You really want to do this now?" she asked.

"Frak, yes, I want to do it, but what I really need to do is let you digest all that I've told you and get a good night's sleep before the meeting tomorrow. Gods, our timing sucks! We could have been doing this for months; instead I decide to kiss you just after telling you that your husband isn't an enemy after all."

"Yeah, frakked up doesn't begin to cover it!"

The mood was broken but they both knew that they were one step away from renewing their intimate relationship and that they both wanted to. Lee felt that whether or not they took that final step depended very much on Kara. He was a free agent but her marital status had suddenly become complicated again. He would let her take that final decision on their relationship once all the questions about Sam and her supposed destiny were answered.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

**Author's note: **I'm really nervous about your reaction to this chapter: I know that some of you are going to hate what I am about to do, but my brain just kept saying this is how it had to be. I apologise profusely now, but I must be true to my theory. If it's any consolation it was really, really difficult to write and I've been agonising over it for days (hence the long delay between chapters).

**Chapter 4**

The journey down to Earth had been passed with an exchange of some subtle and also less than subtle flirting between Lee and Kara that the Starbuck and Apollo of old would have been proud of. Lee sincerely hoped that the air of anticipation that seemed to roll off of them had not been too evident to Racetrack and her ECO, but he doubted that it would have been difficult to miss. Once they had docked, Lee did the gentlemanly thing and stepped aside for Kara to leave the raptor in front of him. She raised her eyebrows at him in a way that clearly said "you've been spending way too much time with Laura Roslin," and then gave him a saucy smirk as she stepped past him and sashayed her way onto the landing bay with a swing of her hips that made his groin ache. She looked back over her shoulder at him.

"Come on Mr chivalrous, you've got the advantage here. I don't have a clue where we're going."

He grinned in return and caught up with her quickly. They were met by one of the Earth officials whom they followed down the seemingly endless corridors that Lee recognised from the day before. Kara kept up a running commentary whilst they walked, starting with how the landing area would be difficult to defend in an attack to wondering what the Yangshi would say to her. He assumed that most of her questions were of the purely rhetorical variety as she did not seem to pause for any answer. He kept his peace, recognising that Kara was using this verbal diarrhoea to cover her nervousness about the coming meeting. He grabbed her hand and pulled her over to a large window.

"Look, its beautiful isn't it?" He gestured towards the view, hoping that seeing their putative new home in all its glory would calm her down a little.

"Yeah" she breathed on a sigh.

"Course, I think that they're showing us the best bits; the areas that weren't nuked."

"You'll see a better view from the Yangshi's quarters," interjected their guide. Lee raised an eyebrow at him in question. "She wants to meet you in her private rooms rather than the conference area," he explained.

They carried on and Lee could only sigh at his singular failure at reducing her nerves when Kara started up her monologue again. Laughingly accepting defeat, he took her hand again. She just gave him a funny look.

"What?"

"Nothing," he smiled back at her. "Just don't ever change on me, Kara." She grinned in return and shrugged as the official at last showed them into a bright room which opened on to a garden. Lee's heart was warmed by the view of the luscious greenery, but he turned at a strangled cry from his companion.

"Kara? What is it? Are you OK?"

"This is it Lee. This is what I saw when I was on Earth before. This exact view," she whispered as she gestured towards the garden and the snow capped mountains beyond, her expression a mixture of startled surprise and trepidation. Lee did not know what to say in response to this revelation so wisely kept silent as Kara began to pace in front of the window even more nervously. There was a slight whoosh of a door behind them and they both turned to see Eve entering the room. Her eyes were glued on Kara who could not help a gasp from escaping at Eve's resemblance to Carolanne Adama. Kara seemed rooted to the spot, but Eve came to stand in front of her and they just stared at each other for the longest time. Lee felt like an intruder on this private moment between the two women and he stepped back to sink into one of the room's several sofas.

"I've been waiting for this moment for so long," Eve said eventually to break the spell that they both seemed to be under.

"Umm, sorry, can't say the same," Kara replied. "Have we met before? I'm afraid that I don't remember you, well except as my almost mother-in-law." Kara gave her best Starbuck smirk, but Lee could tell that it was an act. Eve did not seem to be fooled either as she gave her a gentle smile of understanding.

"No, I doubt very much that you'd remember me, but I presume that you remember Earth? I was assuming that it was you that lead the colonial fleet here." Kara glanced at Lee who shrugged his shoulders in denial. "If you're wondering, neither Lee nor his companions told me anything about any guide: I just knew that it had to be you."

"Really? Care to explain why 'cos I'm really ready for some answers here!"

"Because you're my daughter." Eve's quiet but clear pronouncement seemed to suspend time. Lee could only stare at the pair as his heart seemed to hammer in his throat. Kara gaped at Eve in wide-eyed horror.

"What?" was the only word she managed to get out. Eve reached out to her but Kara pulled away from her. "No, no, no, it's a lie. It can't be true." Eve moved with surprising speed and grabbed both of Kara's hands in hers before the younger woman could retreat any further. High colour was spreading across Kara's cheeks and neck and her eyes were pooled with tears.

"It is true. Look into yourself, Kara. You know deep inside you that what I'm telling you is the truth. I am your mother."

Kara wanted to deny it but she could not speak. She shook her head in denial but it was a token gesture. Like Lee on the previous day she felt a strange comfort from the pressure of Eve's hands wrapped around her own. She found herself doing as Eve asked and somehow she knew that this woman was not lying, but she could not give in so easily. She had been duped by Leoben too many times to let Eve think that she would immediately believe her.

"Why in the name of the Gods should I believe you?"

"I can tell that you feel the truth, Kara, but may be your father can convince you." She pushed a button on a nearby console and a door opened. A man stepped through whom Lee had never seen before but his features were eerily familiar from his similarity to his daughter. Kara stared at him. It had been over 20 years since she had last seen this man but she would know him anywhere.

"Daddy…..?"

"Hey, here's my little princess all grown up." He smiled at her but tears stood out on his lashes. The tears spilled down her own cheeks as she felt her world turn on its axis once again.

"But how?" she managed to whisper, looking in to Eve's eyes and realising how like her own they were. "And who or what was Socrata Thrace to me?" Eve released one of her hands and brushed the tears from Kara's cheeks. Her father came over and took her free hand. He bent to kiss her cheek but Kara shied away. He looked as heartbroken as his daughter by her rejection.

"Come, Kara, let us explain everything to you." Eve gently pulled her over to a sofa opposite the one on which Lee sat in stunned silence. Neither of them let go of her hands and Kara seemed to have no resistance against Eve's wishes.

"You remember, Lee, that yesterday I told you that I received a sign that it was time to seek out the expedition of the refugees. Well Kara was that sign." She patted Kara's hand comfortingly as she continued. "Over the years my clones had many relationships but none ever resulted in a child. It was generally assumed that the first generation clones were sterile. Like many of my predecessors I met a man and fell in love. Sebastian was such a beautiful, talented soul; a brilliant artist, musician and poet that I couldn't help myself." She gazed lovingly across at the man in question as he blushed at her praise. "Then suddenly, after over twelve generations, I discovered that I was pregnant. It was the miracle that we had all been hoping for. As much as I hated the idea of parting with her I knew that the child would be the means by which we could seek out the fate of that expedition into the stars. The child would carry my DNA and hence the knowledge of Earth and the expedition. When you were born, Kara, I looked into your eyes and knew that it was true. Your father wouldn't let you go with strangers so once you were weaned and it was clear that you were thriving he set off with you to seek out the path of the refugees."

"You let her go so young!" Lee interjected. Kara was notably silent except he could see her chest rising and falling with each ragged breath and it was clear that she was trembling from head to foot. Her father took up the story.

"You must remember that we had little idea of where they had ended up and how long it might take to find out what had become of them."

"And Socrata Thrace?" Kara whispered through clenched teeth.

"We were accompanied by a number of your mother's most loyal followers and guards. Socrata was as devoted to you as she was to Eve. She truly believed that our salvation lay in finding out the fate of that expedition. Fortunately it didn't take that long to find the colonies. You were two when we reached the planets. I set about finding out what had become of the clones and that took longer than I'd hoped, but once I understood the position with the Cylons, I knew that I had to return Earth. I also knew that you would have to remain on the colonies in the care of Socrata Thrace, to be groomed for the destiny that you would ultimately fulfil."

"Oh she groomed me alright!" Kara suddenly exploded. "I've got the physical as well as the mental scars to prove it." Her father looked away from her accusing eyes.

"I didn't think….she always seemed so good with you. She told me that she would love you like you were her own child."

"Well pity that child," Kara spat back.

"I am truly sorry for all that you have suffered, Kara. We have all suffered from our duty to our people," Eve interjected. "I loved you from the moment that I knew you would be born, but I also knew that I would have to part with you from that moment. I have had to live with that for thirty years and not a day has gone by when I haven't wished it could have been different. I and my predecessors have served the people of Earth for 4,000 years and that instils an immense sense of duty in a person."

"That's really nice, but just let me get this straight. You sent me, your only child, on a perilous journey into the unknown when I was barely six months old. You, my father, then abandoned me with a psycho stranger on a foreign planet when I was six and you expect me to welcome you with open arms. GET REAL MOTHER, DAD! My life has been a complete crock of shit. I have been beaten, abused or abandoned by everyone who was ever supposed to have loved me, and nothing, NOTHING, you have said to me makes me believe that you'll be any different." She jumped up and ran out of the room before either of her startled parents could react.

Lee, who had been quietly observing the scene playing out before him, spoke up.

"I'd like to say that she'll come round if you give her time, but we'd all know that it wasn't true. But one thing I will say for Kara is that she doesn't hold grudges. You're gonna have to work real hard to gain her trust but it is possible. She'll want to love you. She'd rather die than admit it, but I know that underneath she yearns for love from the people she respects; you should see her with my father. But whatever you do, don't screw it up. Neither I nor my father will let her be hurt any more than she already has been." With a final glare at the stunned pair he rose and left in search of his friend.

XXXXXXXX

He eventually found her sitting on the floor of their deserted raptor. Her chest was heaving and there were tracks of tears down her cheeks. He thought that it was all still too raw for her to talk about so he just sat down next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. She leaned in to him briefly then pulled back with a loud sniff.

"Why do these things keep happening to me? Why do people keep dragging up my past? I just got over it, accepted it, moved on and now it's all been brought back up again. Could my life be any more frakked up?" She wiped her sleeve across her face like a child. "But in a way a lot of things are starting to make more sense to me now. Things momma said and did, why I always found it so hard to relate to her. She never hurt me when he was there; it only started after he left. When he first left I just used to cry for my daddy all the time; now I understand why it seemed to pissed her off so much. I suppose it must have been hard to be left on a strange world with this brat to take care of: it's the kind of thing that leads a person to take solace in booze and cigarettes."

"It doesn't excuse abusing a child; nothing can excuse that," Lee replied quietly, tightening his hold around her shoulders. She had never told him about her childhood outright but he had always suspected. "I know it probably doesn't feel like it at the moment," he went on, "but you do have a chance to have a new relationship with your parents. Take it from someone who knows, that's a precious thing in our position. It may not always be obvious but I wouldn't have survived the last years with my sanity intact without having my Dad there."

"I suppose. I idolised him, you know. Well, it was mutual really. You heard him: I was his little princess. You wouldn't have believed it: fluffy pink dresses, ringlets, the works. I used to sit on his knee as he played the piano. I've kept this vision of this perfect man with me all my life and now suddenly it's gone."

"No, it's only changed. He's alive, Kara. Think about that; you thought that he was long dead and gone but he's alive. I'm the last one who should be lecturing you about parental relationships, but think about it really hard before you reject either of them."

She nodded, acknowledging his wise council. They sat in silence for a few moments, each with their own private thoughts, each thinking over what they had learned that day. As she worked through all the implications, a new perspective suddenly struck Kara.

"I suppose this changes everything between us. I mean it does make us brother and sister, right?" she whispered.

"Umm, I don't really know. Technically, I suppose we're half siblings but maybe we're more like first cousins."

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure us having any kind of relationship that involved us frakking would be frowned upon. Thank the Gods we didn't give in last night."

Lee made a wordless sound, as the fact that he could never touch her intimately again struck him.

"Should we tell anyone about New Caprica?" She asked, ever practical.

"No, I think we can keep that particular can of worms to ourselves. Although I hear that Romo is a bit short of cash. I'm sure he'd be happy to take on the moral dilemma of unknown siblings sleeping together." He tried to inject a little humour into the conversation but the attempt was half-hearted and it completely failed to stop Kara's brain from rapidly working through all the potential implications of their new relationship.

"Oh Gods, what about Zak?"

"Kara, no one is going to blame you for something that you had no knowledge of."

"It does explain a lot though; us being brother and sister."

"Yeah. Kind of explains why I've always been drawn to you, felt the need to protect you even though you generally want to belt me for it," he said with a self-deprecating smile.

"And maybe it explains why we've never been able to take that final step in our relationship. Some sub-conscious feeling has always stopped us."

"Maybe. You were wrong you know, that day on the hanger deck, before you….left. You said that a CAG and his pilot would be all we'd ever be to each other. But we are more, much more: we're family now, in every sense of the word."

He hugged her to him, kissed her cheek and stroked her hair. She pulled in tighter, immeasurably comforted. She felt her internal dilemma over her feelings for Lee begin to seep away and be replaced by a remarkable clarity. Yes, she would always love him, but it would soon evolve into the love for a favourite brother. She was his sister and she always would be no matter what she said or did to him. All those stories around the fleet that they were the living embodiment of the twins Apollo and Artemis really may have been true after all.

They stayed with their arms around each other, gaining comfort from each others embrace, until they were rudely interrupted by Gaeta. He was panting from having run.

"Um, sorry to disturb you Captain Thrace, Mr Adama but thank the Gods I've found you. We've just got word from Galactica that they've detected the Cylon fleet on Dradis."

TBC


End file.
